From Patagonia:
Today we released our “Environmental & Social Initiatives 2014” book that details the steps we took over the last year toward becoming more environmentally and socially responsible. We are excited to highlight our growing support for grassroots environmental organizations around the world.
Patagonia employees from throughout the company decide which organizations receive funds generated from 1% of the company’s sales. In fiscal year 2014, we were thrilled to give 770 environmental groups in 16 countries a total of $6.6 million. Because we are a privately held company, we have the freedom to fund groups off the beaten track that will effectively protect wildlife, wilderness, rivers and oceans, promote renewable energy and sustainable agriculture, and fight pollution and harmful resource extraction.
“As a company made up of activists, our mission to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis goes far beyond our own company,” said Lisa Pike Sheehy, Director of Global Environmental Initiatives at Patagonia. “These groups are mobilizing their communities on the front lines to take action in strategic and impactful ways. Supporting them is the cost of doing business.”
Since the program began in 1985, Patagonia has given over $56 million in grants and in-kind donations to more than 3,000 organizations.
The full list of grant recipients is available in Patagonia’s “Environment and Social Initiatives” book, available digitally here. In addition to philanthropy, we made our first investment from our new venture capital fund for the planet, called $20 Million & Change; worked with key partners to create a new national park in southern Chile; released our first feature-length documentary, DamNation; offered our first line of Fair Trade Certified clothes; and many more initiatives detailed in the book.
To learn more about Patagonia’s grant program, visit www.patagonia.com/grants
About Patagonia
Founded by Yvon Chouinard in 1973, Patagonia is an outdoor apparel company based in Ventura, California. A certified B-Corporation, Patagonia’s mission is to build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm and use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis. Since 1985, Patagonia has dedicated one percent of sales each year to environmental causes.
